Social Media Sunday: October 25, 2015

Social Media Sunday. It’s a thing. Or at least it could be, this June, in your parish.

Hear me out: this isn’t just another gimmick intended to attract young people. And it’s not another lame attempt to be hip and modern. Rather, it’s a simple challenge that asks all of us to make a connection between the tools we use to communicate with our friends and family, and communities that feed and sustain us in our faith journeys.

Think about it. If you use social media, chances are you provide your network with all sorts of updates about your daily life: family events, travel photos, creative expressions in the kitchen, funny cat videos (don’t deny it). But what about your faith? What about the challenge to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ?

Social Media Sunday is a way for people of faith to share their story and invite others to come and see.

What does that look like? It could mean live-tweeting or making Facebook updates during the sermon. It could mean call-and-response prayer. It could mean including worshippers outside the church building. And if that offends you, remember: it’s only one day. And if it still seems extreme, then consider giving some updates and invitations on your way to church, sharing some photos from coffee hour, or reflecting on the service after the fact.

Social media is not going away. And in many ways, it provides those we know with a glimpse into our lives. Why not invite them into your church?

What do you think? Do you have any ideas for Social Media Sunday?

About Jesse Dymond

I'm a priest from the Diocese of Huron, serving as Online Community Coordinator for the Anglican Church of Canada. I have a lifelong interest in computer technology, and continue to pursue interdisciplinary studies in science and theology. I love composing and performing music, cooking, photography, sailing, and riding vintage motorcycles.

How about something where we use Social Media to get us out of our churches. Rather than using #SocialMediaSunday to invite people to come and see, we need to find ways to use it to help our people Go and Tell.

By Tony Houghton May 15, 2014 - 12:40 am

We are called to meet together weekly to share together the mutual worship of God and to share his word.Social media is a tool for touching base with people but can not replace the physical coming together to worship.Why don’t we just have the Rector stand up do the service then we can tune in when it is convenient and go through the service and skip the parts we don’t like. The whole reason for “church” is for people to come to gather to worship and the focus should be on him and him alone not on us or our story but his story and how we conform to live his story.

This post has generated a fair amount of activity since yesterday afternoon, and I think that’s worth making note of. Some people think #SMSunday is a great idea. Others are appalled. And whatever the case, many of you have chosen to share or comment on it in social media. Talking about church. On Facebook/Twitter/The Community. You’re already doing it: don’t make me do the math for you.

But I think June 29 event deserves some clarification:

First, no, this is not an official ACC event, or another “theme Sunday” that is being forced on anyone. It’s an event suggested by some of our friends in The Episcopal Church.

Second, while using social media during the service is one suggested way to participate in #SMSunday, it’s not the only way. To be honest with you, I’m not entirely comfortable with the notion of tweeting from the pulpit or during the prayers. But as Zack Ingles and others have noted, in some places and contexts, it has been a successful way to combine worship and evangelism.

Which leads me to my third point, leaning on the quote provided by our friends at TEC: “Social Media Sunday is a way for people of faith to share their story and invite others to come and see.” I think it would be easy to dismiss the event, if we’re thinking about Sunday morning inwardly (whether that means as an individual, or as a congregation). But if the community gathering is something we want to share with those who surround us, we can’t help but think of Sunday morning outwardly. And if that’s true, shouldn’t we make use of whatever tools we have to share that good news?

At this point, I’m not sure how I will participate in #SMSunday. But it’s an entire day: and one I will use to show my friends and family online why gathering with people like you to pray and worship is important to me.

This is causing some debate in the St. Bede’s community on campus – and I anticipate more in the next few weeks! Our approach has been the opposite – to encourage people to put their smartphones in a basket during the service and to include lots of silence (cos there is so little solitude in students’ lives) – but I think the conversation is worth having – worth thinking about the ways we use social media in all the different areas of our lives – so we can do so intentionally…

By The Rev. Jesse Dymond May 15, 2014 - 10:15 am

Exactly my point. Silence is important to me, too. As is the ability to ‘disconnect’ from technology. But at the same time, I think the event has forced us to ask ourselves what it means if we need to set certain means of communication aside because they can’t be reconciled with our faith and worship practices. Does that imply that these tools are problematic? Or rather, is the way we have been using them problematic?

yes, and I don’t think that these tools are necessarily problematic – the question is more what spiritual needs do I/we see in this particular community? how is G-d calling us to use social media and other tools, on Sunday during worship, but also on a daily basis? And there is no absolute right or wrong – answers are discerned for this group at this time in this place… Anyway – thanks for raising this as a possible ‘date’ for church communities – I think the discussion will be good 🙂

By The Rev. Jesse Dymond May 15, 2014 - 10:37 am

Yup. In the end, we’re talking about practice that is every day and always. This is really no different than the conversation we (should) have around “Back to Church Sunday.” But sometimes, being intentional, and acting together can get the ball rolling.

The Communication Committee in our church of St. Martin’s in Pickering is looking at using our “coffee time”after the 10:30 service on June 29th to educate and answer questions about our new FB page and our Twitter account as there seems to be a lot of misinformation and fear surrounding Social Media in our parish. We want to show how it can be used to reach those already attending our church, and also the wider population.

By The Rev. Jesse Dymond June 5, 2014 - 9:31 pm

That’s a great idea–and a helpful way to introduce those who are uncomfortable with social media!